Oklahoma football: Sooners fall in both major Top-25 polls
By Chip Rouse
The voters in both the Associated Press and Coaches Poll rankings are losing faith in the 2021 edition of Oklahoma football.
The Sooners came away with their fourth consecutive win of the season on Saturday, albeit in unimpressive style, making it three wins by a combined 16 points by a team that began the 2021 season ranked No. 2 in the nation.
Despite what was literally a last-second 16-13 home win over West Virginia, Oklahoma dropped one spot, to No. 4, in the Coaches Poll this week and fell two spots, to No. 6, in the AP Top 25. Oregon, Penn State and Iowa jumped the Sooners in the AP poll. Oregon replaced OU at No. 3 in the Coaches Poll.
Iowa State, with a loss to Baylor, dropped out of both polls, with Baylor breaking into the rankings — at No, 21 in the AP poll and 24 in the Coaches Poll — for the first time this season.
The Sooners, Oklahoma State and now Baylor are the only three Big 12 teams this week in the top-25 rankings. Oklahoma State is 19th in the AP poll and 18th in the Coaches Poll after defeating former AP No. 25 Kansas State.
Alabama and Georgia were clear No. 1 and 2 choices in both polls, with the Crimson Tide 58 of the 62 first-place votes in the AP poll and all but one of the 65 first-place votes by the coaches.
Oklahoma remains No. 3, however, in the ESPN College Football Power Index behind No. 1 Georgia and Alabama.
The biggest movers were Arkansas, up eight spots, to No. 8, in the AP poll, and up seven, to No. 11 in the Coaches Poll. The Razorbacks knocked off Texas A&M, which fell to No. 15th in the AP and 13th in the Coaches Poll. Clemson lost to North Carolina State in overtime and dropped all the way to No. 25 in the AP Poll from No. 9 last week.